Question

How would you distinguish experimetlly between alcohol and carboxylic acid any three?

Answer 1

acid reacts with naoh to form salt and water but alcohol do not react
acid reacts with nahco3 to give CO2 but alcohol do not
acid turns blue litmus red because it is acidic but alcohol do not

Answer 2

We can distinguish between an alcohol and a carboxylic acid on the basis of their reaction with carbonates and hydrogen carbonates. Acid reacts with carbonate and hydrogen carbonate to evolve CO2 gas that turns lime water milky. Alcohols, on the other hand, do not react with carbonates and hydrogen carbonates.